Apr 26, 2010

Delaying Lag B'Omer

I always did wonder why the religious parties always insist the State move any functions it promotes that would fall out on Saturday night to Sunday night instead so as to avoid creating a situation in which many people would desecrate the shabbos while making preparations for the event. Yet, the celebrations of Lag B'Omer that falls out on Saturday night is never delayed until Sunday night, despite similar concerns of chillul shabbos, whether it be by the bus drivers who have to prepare and get to their locations, be it people who prepare for various functions at the various parties. There is plenty of reason to be concerned that some people might be mechalel shabbos in the preparation of the parties.

We don't push off these celebrations, and for a long time I have wondered why.

Now, Rav Metzger has recommended that we do just that. He is promoting pushing off the celebrations of Lag B'Omer until Sunday afternoon, going into Sunday night and Monday.

Sure, less than a week to go is a bit late to make such a recommendation, and it has pretty much no chance to succeed (not just for that reason, but even that reason alone is enough to ensure the failure of the proposal), but it is still an interesting proposal.

First of all, the majority of people going to miron are frum- so they are not going to be mechallel shabbos. about the bus drivers- I heard that the first egged busses to miron are leaving two hours after shabbos.

Anon 1:19, Tisha B'av and Purim are juggled around because of Shabbat.

Guess they're "made up" days also and only supposedly "so important" as well?

Keels- you're talking about the majority of pple going to Meron. LBO is a major Israeli chiloni holiday in its own right (i take it you don't live in a mixed neighborhood). Chiloni kids have been collecting wood for weeks and believe me, they will be starting their bonfires shabbat afternoon, since they don't care about shkia or being mechallel shabbat. It's a major problem and why would it make any difference to have bonfires a day later?

Huh? That's the best you can do, that "pushing it off" wasn't a part of the making of the chag? Lag B'omer isn't even an official chag the way Purim or Tisha b'av is. You're not committing a sin if you don't have a bonfire or fail to make it to Meron on that particular night. It's a nice thing to do, but it's not like skipping megilla on Purim or not fasting on Tisha B'av.

And if it's the choice between thousands of people being mechalel shabbat or being able to prevent it by pushing off the celebrations for a day, I'm not sure why it's even a question.

This is a problem unique to modern Israeli society, since it's such a popular holiday with chilonim. I doubt they had massive issues of people making "early Lag B'omer" when it fell on a shabbat in Europe like they do today in Israel. And bonfires are too much of a hassle to coordinate in America, so it never became a widespread custom there either, to the extent that it is in Israel.

mrs s, lulav and shofar are mitzvot and not postponement of DAYS, which has ramifications of birchat hazman and kedushat hayom, etc.

original anon, 9Av and Purim were established long before the gezeira to push them off on shabbat. just like the chachamim established those days, the chachamim of our generation established YH and YZ.

i heard an interesting shiur about this issue (postponing YH and YZ) here:

Hubscubs - Ein hachi nami. They are mitzvot (and d'orayta ones at that), and yet they're *cancelled* because of Shabbat. And therefore, there really should be no problem with postponing (not even cancelling) the bonfire, which is at most a minhag, to avoid chilul Shabbat...

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About Me

I am a regular Joe with a Yeshiva background. I learned in Telshe Yeshiva, Heichal HaTorah (R' Tzvi Kushelevsky), and a now defunct Halacha Kollel. I have semicha from R' Zalman Nechemia Goldberg and kaballa in Shechita from Dayan Schwartz of Kehillas HaYeraim (Chomas HaKashrus). I have a college degree in Finance from Touro College and am also a Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer.
My wife and I, with our 8 children, ben porat yosef (knayna hara), live in Eretz Yisrael.